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Sunday, December 16, 2012

Review: Falling Kingdoms by Morgan Rhodes

It's been months since I first knew of this book. I wanted it right away. Because the cover is gorgeous. I love it. And it was a Fantasy book. I'm pretty sure Fantasy books are my favorite books. They are just perfect. And when I read the summary I wanted this book even more. But I didn't request an ARC of it, because I wasn't sure if I would be able to read it because of all the different main characters. I was wrong. This book was perfect. Heartbreakingly perfect. I loved it with all my heart. I wish I had read it sooner, but I also wish I hadn't read it yet, because I cannot survive a year waiting for the sequel.

Falling Kingdoms is amazing. The writing is stunning. Which was perfect, because I'm a sucker for good writing. All the characters are amazing as well. I fell in love with every one of them. Except for Aron, lol :) The story is incredible. I loved this book from the very beginning. It starts with deaths. And while they are awful, I have always liked reading about deaths. They are also done so well. Everything in this book is done so good. There was just one thing that I disliked, and it isn't even a big issue. I don't know how to describe my love for this book. But I will try. Starting with the characters.

The first kingdom is Auranos, the Southern kingdom. Where one of the main characters lives. Cleo short for Cleiona. I had seen that many people didn't like her. Once I started reading I didn't understand why. Cleo might have been my favorite character in this book. Sure, she's a bit young and stupid, but I found her adorable and likeable. Didn't like that she snuck out so many times, but I didn't dislike her for it. Cleo is a strong person. A strong princess. And I liked her a whole lot. Can't wait for more of her.

Cleo has a sister, Emilia. Who I adored. She is mostly ill in this book, but we get to know her still. And I liked her a lot. We also get to know Mira and Nic, both who I also liked a lot. Nic seemed to be in love with Cleo. But she just consider him her best friend. Thank god. Hih. Then there is Aron. My god. I hated him. He does the first killing in this book. The one that changes everything. He's also a drunk. And I just disliked him so much. He isn't a kind person. He's also engaged to Cleo. Do not approve.

Good thing, though, is that Cleo doesn't like him at all. She hates him. Thank god. But she can't do anything about the engagement because he knows this secret of hers. That is the one thing I disliked in this book. Her secret. I shouldn't care about it. But it still bothers me when I read about it in other books as well :p I'm just weird like that. But I also understood it. Maybe. Then there is Theon. Cleo's personal guard. I loved him. There is a small romance between him and Cleo. And it was so sweet and amazing and I just wished there had been so much more. It didn't end very well. Heartbroken forever.

The second kingdom is Paelsia, the Middle kingdom. There we meet another main character, Jonas. And, well, I kind of fell in love with Jonas early on. He's pretty amazing. He's very angry, though, and I'm not sure I approved of everything he did. But I have hope for him. He's full of grief because his brother Tomas was murdered; by Aron. And it's all so awful. But I loved reading about Jonas. While he seems like an asshole at times, I did find him to be kind and sweet other times. Can't wait for more of him.

We get to know a lot from that kingdom. While Auranos is a wealthy land, full of riches and green grass, Paelsia is almost dead. The people is poor, the grass is dead. Pretty sure the whole land there will be dead very soon. It's an awful place to live. We also get to know some characters. Liked Jonas best friend, Brion. Hated the chief of this kingdom. He was kind of awful. And so stupid. I did not approve of him. But I did love reading about Eirene. She was a very sweet old woman, and an interesting plot twist.

The third kingdom is Limeros, the Northern kingdom. There we meet the last two main characters in this book. Magnus and Lucia. Brother and sister. Prince and Princess. This kingdom is my least favorite of them. The ruler is the King of Blood. He's goddamn awful. I hated him so much. He did so many cruel things. I also didn't approve of the way he ruled his kingdom. No fun for anyone. No books, no singing. Sounded awful. And cold. But I did love many other things about this kingdom. I really did. Kind of :)

Like Magnus. At first I loved him so much. Such a great character. I loved reading about him. I also kind of loved his forbidden feelings for his sister. He just loved her so much. And I did find him to be really sweet. But I hated the secret about the scar on his face.. Shudders. I did like reading about Magnus and Lucia. But is also broke my heart so much. Because, well, she doesn't love him. Not like he loves her. And I kind of just wanted them together.. but she cares for him so much as a brother. It was so sweet.

My feelings for Magnus started to change though, towards the ending of the book. He did some awful thing. He killed a person I loved so much. It was his first kill, and I felt awful about it, but that doesn't make the person he killed come back to life. Sniffs. After his first kill he started getting worse. So much colder. And ahh. I did not approve at all. Magnus changed. There was a war, and he killed so many people. And it seems to have changed him so much. But I'm hoping. I'm hoping he gets better.

Then there is Lucia. She's a special character. She's sweet and kind and all kinds of adorable. She's also got a secret. I won't spoil it, but it's pretty amazing. And I loved reading about it. But it also gives me fears. I don't want her to ruin any more things in the second book. She mustn't. But I have hope. Because she is so sweet. And I did love reading about her. And while I know it will probably never ever happen, I really want her to start having feelings for Magnus. They would be so sweet together.

Falling Kingdoms is about so many people. I thought it would be too much for me to read. But it wasn't. Everything was perfect. Every character. This book is also about magic. Kind of. We get to learn about some legends, and some sorceress. It's pretty exciting too :) I'm sure we'll get to know a lot more about the magic in the sequel. But I did love what we did get to learn in this one. Just want more and more. We also get to know about some Watchers; just not enough. I need more of those too.

This book is an epic fantasy journey. It is so perfect. I could not stop reading it. I never wanted it to end. And oh. The ending is a killer. Big cliffhanger, kind of. I might survive waiting a year for the next one, but I do not want to. I want the sequel right away. Falling Kingdoms is full of heartbreak. Maybe too much. And not enough. There is so many deaths. Of people I loved. Never wanted them to die. But it was also so good. Written so well. And I do like reading heartbreaking books. Just didn't think it would hurt so much. But yeah. Falling Kingdoms is full of pain. And it's so fantastic. I loved it.

I'm so glad I read this book. I cannot wait to read it again and again. It really was perfect. I'm dying to read the sequel. Hoping it will be out soon. If you haven't read Falling Kingdoms yet, I really suggest that you do so. Because it's perfect. And you'll fall in love with it. With the story. The writing. The adorable characters. There is just so much to love in this book. And I need everyone to read it. It's perfect.

Got to admit, I hated this book. Like, absolutely hated it, but that's seriously just me. I can see EXACTLY why you loved it, because there are a lot of things to love, and I'm glad you did! Nice review :)

I felt the same way about Jonas, though I did like him by the end. I'm hoping that maybe we'll get a little something between him and Cleo in the next book. Because the way the romance between Theon and Cleo ended did not make any sense - why bother to include it in the first place? >.< Anyway, I'm really glad you liked this too! I thought you might. :) Can't wait for the next one!

About Me

I'm 24 years old and from Norway. I love reading more than anything. Other things that I love: His Dark Materials. The Scorpio Races. The Lunar Chronicles. Illuminae. My cat and my books. HTTYD. Disney. Studio Ghibli. And lots more. ❤